This coming week, Oct. 1 to 7, is Mental Illness Awareness Week.
What is mental illness?
According to the Surrey Hospital Outpatient Centre Foundation, it is "a wide range of disorders that affect mood, thinking and behaviour. They include anxiety disorders, mood disorders, including bipolar disorder, schizophreniapsychotic disorders, substance use and dependency disorders, behavioural disorders and eating disorders."
Fraser Health goes on to say: "Early recognition with appropriate response can minimize the impact of mental illness. Fifty per cent of all lifetime cases of mental Illness begin by age 14 and 75 per cent begin by age 24. One-third of B.C.'s population lives in Fraser Health, which has more young people than anywhere else in B.C. Because of gaps in the continuum of care, only 25 per cent of our children who need specialized care receive it."
Mental health visits for children and youth at Fraser Health emergency departments have more than doubled in the last six years. More than 47,000 young people here currently experience mild to severe mental health concerns. As many as 700 of these kids are in crisis with acute psychiatric problems and need to be admitted to receive immediate specialized care.
To date, there are no beds but the Surrey Hospital Foundation is fundraising to build a 10-bed Child Adolescent Psychiatric Stabilization Unit.
I met with Delta police S/Sgt. Ryan Hall about mental illnessrelated calls, which have gone from one a day to three a day. His qualifications include being a Lower Mainland crisis negotiator over the last five years. He has worked with the RCMP, Port Moody police, Abbotsford police and New Westminster police at different times. He has talked to people sitting outside the railings of the Pattullo and Alex Fraser bridges and to people with makeshift explosive devices.
"The people who end up in crisis tend to have had a long-term battle with illness or addiction and are estranged from family, friends, have no support, and have had a critical incident within the past day or so which caused them to become mentally unstable," says Hall. "Conversely, those who have adequate supports are able to avoid these crisis situations."
Hall pointed out some changes that need to be made to B.C.'s Mental Health Act.
"The difference between B.C.'s act and Alberta's act is that in Alberta they can make an apprehension before someone is a danger to themselves or others, and take them where they can receive treatment and/or support. The requirement in B.C. is that a police officer must deliver the person (already in crisis) to a physician. The advantage of the Alberta act is that police can be proactive in assisting someone before a crisis occurs." The other problem for Delta police is they must transfer someone in mental crisis to Surrey Memorial Hospital as Delta Hospital cannot take them. Once there, they must wait with the person, often for three to six hours, before a psych doctor can see them. This represents a huge drain on police resources.
How can we help? Write to your provincial MLAs to amend the B.C. Mental Health Act. You can also donate to the Surrey Hospital Foundation or attend its fundraiser on Oct. 17 at Jimmy Flynn's Pub. It's a "Guess That Tune" trivia night. Call 604-816-2144 for tickets.
And don't be a NIMBY if a mental health support home comes to town. Every community needs them.
ML Burke retired from the health sector to work on community issues such as affordable housing. She sits on the Delta Seniors Planning Team and the B.C. Seniors Advocate's Advisory Council.
